


All her names, all at once

by LillithBlack



Category: Bitterblue - Kristin Cashore, Graceling - Kristin Cashore, Seven Kingdoms Trilogy - Kristin Cashore
Genre: F/M, Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-07-20
Updated: 2014-07-20
Packaged: 2018-02-09 17:33:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,388
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1991667
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LillithBlack/pseuds/LillithBlack
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Teddy still calls her Lucky. Bitterblue ponders the names they call her.</p>
            </blockquote>





	All her names, all at once

**Author's Note:**

> Literally whacked this out while still thinking of Bitterblue despite having finished the series days ago. It would let me be. Bitterblue sure does get called a lot of names.

Teddy still calls her Lucky, on the rare occasion they manage to hide away in a nook of the Great library for lunch. He tells her about his newest struggle with Death and the presses and she whiles away the time forgetting for a moment the strain of her job. Often they stifle their giggles, her face in his shoulder, his in her hair as they distract Lovejoy from behind a bookcase and cause Death no end of frazzled worriment over his cats erratic behaviour. It makes their hearts feel light and stops Death working himself to well- his death.

"That was Lucky" Teddy winks when they manage to escape the library without notice.

The letters Saf sends are ciphered to 'Sparks' They have grown a lot closer in between the pages they exchange back and forth across the Monsean and Dellian border. It's a couple of years now but Saf has not returned, having joined the spy network under Lady Fire's sister in law. His grace though difficult to work on Lady Fire has become instrumental for communication in many of their spy networks. After all one simply has to have met him and he can relay information overnight. She misses him like an ache still but they are talking more than they ever would had he stayed and her heart is content for he writes as if he will return one day. 

"Sparks!" His first letter back had began, "You wouldn't believe the monsters I've seen! The greatest coloured beasts..." She thinks Saf doesn't know the extent of his grace, for every few days she dreams, dreams what he dreams and dreams what he sees. 

She takes great pleasure in reading and rereading these letter and keeps them together in her mother’s chest in her room. She never tells him his dreams are reaching her and he never mentions it. She wonders if it is deliberate or not but doesn't write to him about it Incase they stop. For in her dreams he doesn't call her Lady queen but Sparks and they run across the roofs of Kings City.

Po calls her Beetle and swings her around in a wide arc whenever he returns from Estill any other misadventure. She spends the evening with his head in her lap. He murmurs about his travels to her sleepily as they keep vigil. In the morning Kasta newly arrived and fresh faced wakes them up. They leave Po In her sitting room and Kasta takes her to morning sword practice. She still calls her ‘child’ even though Bitterblue is past twenty. As if any moment she will order her on to her back and carry and protect her through another snow storm.

Helda calls her child too and Bitterblue wonders is that where Katsa picked it up. Helda calls her Child Queen still like she did when Bitterblue had been newly crowned and woke in sweats every night after Katsas departure.

Skye calls her cousin teases her about her marriage when he returns without Saf once more from the Dells. She already knows much of the language now and much of the scenery but she lets him regal her with their wonder and sits at her desk watching him fondly. 

In court Ror will use her title but when they are alone he calls her 'little nibbling' this gives Po and Skye no end of amusement and she blushes to the roots of her hair when her uncle King forgets her royal address once during a trade meeting. Po and Skye are laughing so loud tears leak from their eyes and they are escorted from the room leaning on each other by a grinning but irate Katsa. King Ror looks suitably mortified and sheepish all at once but Bitterblue shakes her head and motions for the meeting to continue all the while smiling inside to herself.

Raffin has taken to calling her Queenling and insisting that she return to the Midluns with him, so that he can present her as his betrothed and get his father off his case. When she and Bann laugh at him uproariously he huffs and scowls.

"No it's perfect" he maintains, "Bann and I will stay here and our first child will be the heir to Moonsea, our second can be heir to Midluns. When father finally relinquishes the throne, they can be King or Queen!" 

"But Raffin," Bitterblue giggles, "however could I let my second child leave me so quickly?"

"You're not factoring in that Randa, that old coot, won't leave us for a very very long time, your children will be well grown by then Queenling." Bann puts in catching onto the name but not to the plan.

"Oh Raffin." Bitterblue sighs giving him another one of their comfort hugs. "You and Bann will figure something out about this marriage nonsense, I know you will,"

"Like you did?" Raffin mutters, he doesn't hug back, back stiff. hHe doesn't relinquish his posture until Bann joint their embrace pulling Raffin down and giggling muffled into his back, "It was a great plan though I'll give you that."

"Sister" she had whispered to herself on that first startling night of truth. "Sister" now whispers Hava on their shared nights of wandering the art gallery. Sometimes she sleep when bitterblue visits, not well but she tries. And when she wakes from the fevered dreams, her eyes open in wonder to know someone is there and can see her back. "Sister" Hava calls her in the quiet of the night when they grieve for the mothers they lost to a father they didn't want.

Lady queen Thiel used to call her. Sweet child. The sound sits heavy on her tongue when she says it. Lady queen he used to fret when she didn't listen. Or when she asked about the past. 'Lady queen don't ask this of me" but she did ask or perhaps she didn’t ask enough. Lady queen it sat heavy with meaning and all his hopes and desires. His demand of forgiveness that she was never in possession of giving because it was his own forgiveness he needed. Lady queen Darby had said the last time she saw him. Lady queen Rood greeted when she went to visit.

Lady queen everyone else calls her and though Saf was the only one with whom she showed her irritation at the title she never lets it slip with her subjects and advisors. Giddon when he calls her does so in such a way she never feels it.

Lady queen her greets her kissing her fingertips and bitterblue smiles. Somehow when Giddon says it it doesn't seen to hold the same sort of weight or purpose, it's like a gentle caress. He doesn't seem to be asking her for anything. He merely states it like a truth but one that's sweet. He might as well be calling her darling. This is why she takes his hand as they walk across the palace gardens and she tells him all the truths he's been missing. 

She doesn't let anyone call her darling though. Only her father called her darling. She isn't his nor anyone else's darling now.

Leck was the name he fashioned for himself, thinking it more favourable than Imiker. Certainly it was better than monster. Bitterblue was the name her mother gave her and was perhaps the only one who called her by it. Save perhaps Lady Fire.

Often times, standing on monster bridge bitterblue thinks about the names she's been given and cherishes them. She thinks she's only as strong as the faith they put into her names. She's not Bitterblue pretending to be Sparks anymore like Imiker pretended to be Leck his whole life. She is Sparks and Lucky and Beetle and Lady queen. 

If she were just one of these names she wouldn't be able to stand on this bridge. Because the child is scared and confused, Sparks would want to push herself and daringly climb. Queenling would run away and Beetle would cry. The lady queen wouldn't be allowed on the bridge and lucky would never be so stupid to revisit the place if such beautiful and terrible memories.  
But bitterblue is all her names, all at once and stronger for it. She stands on that bridge as the snow swirls down.

**Author's Note:**

> This ended up being a lot longer than the ten or so sentences of Drabble it was meant to be. Feedback would be nice. Or come to my tumblr or the same name and talk to me about this series because where is the fandom I need on now.


End file.
